Horse hay-fork



(No Model.)

. J. T. WATKINS.

HORSE HAY Pom.

N0. 306,667. Patented 001'.. 14, 1884.

@Ntra STATES,

7 Afr-ENT erica.;

J AMES T. W'A'IKINS, OF `SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

HoRsEHAY-FORK. i f

SPECIFICATION forming part ofLetters .Patent No. 306,667, dated October14, 1884.

Application filed February 1, 1884.

(No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES T. WnTKINs, a

citizen of the United States,residing in the clear, and exactdescription of the same, reference being had ings.

My improvements in horse hay-forks com-l to the accompanying drawprise acertain novel construction and combination of parts to produce a cheap,strong, and durable implement. The following description explains thenature of these improvements and the manner in which I proceed toconstruct, apply, use,l and carry out the same.

In the drawings referred to, Figure l is a' finished fork ready for use,Fig. 2, a View taken from the bottom or under side of the frame or head.Figs. 3, 4, and 5 are detail views of the metal parts of the head on alarger scale.

One novel and useful feature possessed by my improved fork is itsquality or capability ot being separated into vparts for storage andshipment, and to be put together again for use without the need ofskilled labor, while another feature is the simplicity of constructionof the parts that enables repairs 'to be readily made by an ordinaryworkman. The frame to which the tines are xed, commonlytermed the headof the fork is made of a single straight tlat bar of steel, A, andinclined wooden bars B B, called the timbers when on the outside, andbraces when on the inside, of the frame. The lower ends of these timbersare slotted, and the steel bar A being let into the slot at least thefull depth of the bar, the tines C C are carried through the timbers andbar and secured by nuts. D at the back of the head. Both timbers andbracesare made with a gradual taper from the bottom to the top of theframe, at which part they meet and enter a block or casting, E, oftriangular shape, which has sockets e e to receive the ends of thetimbers, and a recess with 'bearings for the spring-bolt F. This blockor casting I prefer to cast in one piece. It consists of two outsideplates, E E, of triangular form, set at a distance apart correspondingto the thickness of the timbers to be taken in` between them, and havingbolt-holes g g in line through which bolts pass to secure the timber.Between the plates are two webs, h, joining themv together and inclosinga square space or recess through the center ofthe casting to hold thecatch F. These webs are partitions formed by the upper portion of aloop-shape 6o plate, H, placed between the side plates, with the loopextending below the lower edges. At this part the plate approaches theform of atriangle, a hole, i, being made in the flat or bottom part ot'the loop to let the bolt Fthrough, while 65 at the upper part the twosides are brought together to form the rectangular socket or recess forthe head of the catch. The plates or side pieces, E, and the loop-shapeplate H, joining them together, are readily castin one piece. Theinclined sides h of the loop H have the same slant as the braces orinner timbers of the frame, and the ends ot the two timbers B', beingplaced on either side of the brace or triangular loop, are secured inthe castingbetween the outside timbers, B, and the webs h h, as in asocket. A single bolt, j, passed? through the outside timber and throughthe 5 end ofthe brace into the web h, is sufficient to hold the partstogether at each side. The 8o head K of the latch lits and workssmoothly in the recess, while its shank is formed of 'a round bolthaving a slot, f, in the lower end to receive the hook L of the trippingrope, and

a pin, m, at a point below the shoulder for a coil-spring, N, to bearagainst. When the bolt is in place, the lower end extends below thebottom of the bow-shaped brace-plate, and the hook L forms a stop to`limit its upward movement, the motion downward being con- 9o trolled bythe shoulder or bottom of the enlarged head, and a small rib orprojection, p, cast on the inside of the recess, as shown at dottedlines, Fig. 3, for the shoulder to strike against. The spring N holdsthe bolt out of the top of the socket, and in raising the frame of thefork into upright position the bail b rides over the rear lug orprojection of the catch and drops into the slot s of the latch. Thefront lug, k2, projects somewhat higher ioo than the rear one, so thatit acts as a stop to prevent the frame from swinging too far over. Thisconstruction is clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4. The bail b is ofordinary construction,

except that its lower ends are carried away from the top faces of thetimbers and have a return bend or offset, b', at the ends to formpintles or swivel-bearings. These pass through ears t, iiXed on thelower ends of each outside timber, and are 'screw-threaded to receivenut d. The ears are part of clamping-pieces T, each of which is composedof a top plate 'that lies upon the upper face of the timber, and hasdepending side pieces, T', that inclose the timbers between them, andextend down and under the bottom faces, thus forming straps that embraceboth sides of the timbers. The heads of the outside tines are earriedthrough the plates and receive the holdlng-nut on the back. The frontplate has a square hole to receive the tine-shank; but the hole in therear plate is circular to correspond with that part of the tine-shankwhich 1s screw-threaded, and passes through it to the outside. ThisIgives a stronger construction for .the suspension ears or lugs to whichthe hails are attached, and brings the weight and strain equally uponboth sides ofthe timbers and bar of the head and affords a firmconnection of the shank of the tine to the bar. This construction isshown in detail in Figs. 5 oi.' the drawings. The lower edges of theside pieces are bent to embrace the timbers, as at u. The same characterof strap may be used for the middle tines also, or single straps of thekind shown in the drawings can bc employed. The handle W on the back ofthe head is formed of a plate, w, having a socket wlth an eye or ring,w', to guide the trippingrope, and a long bolt, 102, screw-threaded, toreceive and secure the handle. The plate is iiXed to the back of thesteel bar by two short bolts, w3 w3.

Among the advantages derived from thisimproved construction ofhay-forkmay be mentioned the compact character of the head,there belng noprojecting braces or stays at the back, and the manner in which it isput together enables the parts to be easily separated and packed insmall compass for shipment. It is adapted, also,to be manufactured at anexceedingly low cost, and to be repaired when broken without requiringthe services of a skilled workman.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a horse hay-fork, a head or frame consisting of the metal bar A,the inclined timbers B B, and'braces B B', the timbers and braces havingslotted ends into which the bar A is set, and is secured by the shanksof the tiues passing .through them, the end strap plates provided withside pieces that embrace and take over the timbers, and ablock orcasting having sockets to receive the upper ends of the inclinedtimbers, and provided with a center recess or chamber for a slidingcatch,

and holes for bolts, all substantially as herein described.

2. In a horse hay-fork of that class in which the head or frame is atriangle formed of inclined timbers running together at the top, theblock or casting having outside cheek-pieces, the inside web, and thedepending bow-shape plate, substantially as herein described.

3. In a horse hay-fork whereof the head or frame is atriangle, the blockor casting having outside cheek-pieces, webs, bow-shaped extension, andthe sliding latch working through a guide-slot in the bottom oi thebow-shaped extension, and its upper end projecting above the top of therecess, substantially as herein described.

4. In a horse hay-fork, the combination ofnthebinding-platehavingthecheek-pieces,web, and bow-shaped extension, thebolt N, having the latch-head K, slot s, aud shank F, the spring forthrowing out the latch, and the stop in the recess for controlling itsdownward movement, substantially as herein described.

J. T. WATKINS. [1.. s] XVitneSSeS:

JNO. L. TAG-GARD, EDWD. E. OsBoRN.

